Fall 2010: Joe Lussier
After completing his studies at Franco American School in 1984, Joe Lussier attended Central Catholic High School,
graduating in 1988. He moved on to Merrimack College, where he completed a Bachelor of Science degree in Finance and Accounting
in 1993, earning Summa Cum Laude status. Joe also is a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) and holds the prestigious Chartered
Financial Analyst (CFA) designation.
Today, Joe serves as Enterprise Bank’s Chief Investment Officer. During
his tenure at Enterprise, Joe has held various positions, including Controller and Senior Vice President of Finance. Prior
to joining Enterprise Bank in 1999, Joe was an Assurance Manager at KPMG, LLC, a big four international accounting firm.
Joe attributes much of his success to early influences at Franco American School.
"As I look back,
I now appreciate how FAS provided me with a well-structured and disciplined education that made my transition to a challenging
high school curriculum very manageable. I felt as though I had an edge over those students who
weren’t prepared in the Catholic tradition, or at Franco American School, for that matter."
Joe joined
Franco American School’s Board of Directors in the fall of 2009. Since his return, he has served on the Finance Committee,
the Development Committee, and the newly-formed Alumni Association. Joe also is actively involved in other organizations in
the community, serving as a Treasurer and Board Member of the Dracut Scholarship Foundation and as the Fundraising Chair of
the Lowell Transitional Living Center. 
Spring/Summer 2009: Brent Smith
Dr. Brent Smith, a 1987 FAS graduate, recently
presented Sr. Lorraine Richard with a check for $500 and a promise to fund an annual $1,000 scholarship for a current student.
During the presentation, he spoke
of the influence that FAS has had on his life.
Smith said, “Franco American School has played a vital role in my personal, intellectual, and spiritual
development.”
He credited
the staff at FAS for inspiring him to achieve a number of personal goals in his life.
“Whether walking miles along the Great Wall of China, eating lunch with indigenous children of Bolivia,
or teaching international marketing students in Rome, I always reflect on the people and personalities that inspired me.”
He added, “The supportive teachers,
diligent administrators, lay staff, and faithful Sisters of Charity of Quebec planted and protected seeds of opportunity within
my young mind.”
Smith continued
his educational journey at Central Catholic High School and then at Xavier University and Tulane University. He later obtained
his PhD from Drexel University.
Today,
he is a marketing professor at Saint Joseph’s University and primarily teaches courses in international marketing and
marketing strategy.
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Winter 2010: Edward Lacerte
In the fall of 2009, the National Basketball
Athletic Trainers Association (NBATA) established the Ed Lacerte Service Award, named for the Celtics trainer and FAS alumnus.
Lacerte, who has been with the Celtics for 23 years, is the longest-serving trainer in Celtics history.
In addition
to his responsibilities as the team’s athletic trainer, he has acted as the team’s physical therapist and strength
and conditioning coach for eight of those 23 seasons.
Ed is the only athletic trainer in the league who is a licensed
physical therapist, a certified and licensed athletic trainer, a certified strength and conditioning specialist, and a board
certified sports clinical specialist. In 1993, he was recognized as NBA Athletic Trainer of the Year, one of countless other
awards he has received throughout his career. He also served as the
trainer for the 1992 gold medal-winning U.S. Olympic Basketball "Dream Team."
Ed graduated in 1982 from
Boston University with a degree in Physical Therapy and earned a Master’s degree in Education in 1987, also from B.U.
Prior to joining the Celtics, he worked as the head athletic trainer for Boston University’s hockey and football teams
from 1982 to1985.
In the fall, the National
Basketball Athletic Trainers Association (NBATA) established the Ed Lacerte Service Award, named for the Celtics trainer and
FAS alumnus. Lacerte, who has been with the Celtics for 23 years, is the longest-serving trainer in Celtics history.
In addition to his responsibilities as the team’s athletic trainer, he has acted as the team’s physical therapist
and strength and conditioning coach for eight of those 23 seasons.
Ed is the only athletic trainer in the league
who is a licensed physical therapist, a certified and licensed athletic trainer, a certified strength and conditioning specialist,
and a board certified sports clinical specialist. In 1993, he was recognized as NBA Athletic Trainer of the Year, one of countless
other awards he has received throughout his career. He also served as the
trainer for the 1992 gold medal-winning U.S. Olympic Basketball "Dream Team."
Ed graduated in 1982 from
Boston University with a degree in Physical Therapy and earned a Master’s degree in Education in 1987, also from B.U.
Prior to joining the Celtics, he worked as the head athletic trainer for Boston University’s hockey and football teams
from 1982 to1985.
Today, Ed resides in Westford with
his wife and five children. 
Winter 2009: Cara Moore
Cara (Correnti) Moore, an anchorwoman and reporter for WHTM ABC 27 in Harrisburg, PA, was nominated in the fall of
2008 for an Emmy by the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences for Lucy’s Café.
Prior
to working in Harrisburg, the 1991 FAS graduate was employed as a news anchor for KVII, an ABC affiliate in Amarillo, TX,
where she was the recipient of an Associated Press Award for After the Storm, a documentary on the aftermath of Hurricane
Katrina in Mississippi and Louisiana.
Moore attributes much of her success to the education that she received while
at FAS.
Franco American School provided an environment "that helped me to learn and to grow…a place
that not only prepared me for higher education but also prepared me to be a driven, successful person," she said.
Franco American School "is more than just a school," she added, "It is a place filled with caring educators
who make every student feel important and loved."
Principal Sr. Lorraine Richard remembers her as "a
beautiful girl both inside and out."
Moore said that teachers like Sr. Lorraine, Sr. Celine, Sr. Marguerite,
Sr. Jane, and Sr. Cecile (affectionately known as "Sr. Grandma") helped mold her into the successful woman that
she is today.
"I wouldn’t trade my education at Franco for the world," she added, "After all,
it’s a large part of who I am."
After graduating from Franco American School, Moore continued her Catholic
school education at the Academy of Notre Dame in Tyngsboro, MA, and then at Merrimack College in North Andover, MA, where
she majored in English.
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